Nazi Germany: Z5-Z16 (1936-1945) The Z5 class or 1934A Zerstörer (destroyers) were twelve fleet destroyers built in the mid-1930s for the Kriegsmarine, essentially repeats of the Type 1934 but with a clipper bow for improved seakeeping, the staukeil short under transom keel to imporve agility, raise the stern at high speed. But these were criticized … Read more
Nazi Germany: Z1 Leberecht Maas, Z2 Georg Thiele, Z3 Max Schulz, Z4 Richard Beitzen (1934-1945) The 1934 Type destroyers (Zerstörer) were the first Kriegsmarine true fleet destroyers, illegal as per the Versailles Treaty when developed from 1932, and legalized (but by declaring fake tonnage) after the Anglo-German naval agreement of 1935… For this important new … Read more
Kriegsmarine, 25 ships (1936-1945) Introduction The Kriegsmarine, or German Navy from 1933 onwards was like the US and Royal Navy interested to provide distant support to its assets, whether they were U-Bootes, S-Bootes (motor torpedo boats) or R-Bootes (minesweepers) and built 12 fleet tenders, 3 gunnery training ships doubling as wartime minelayers, two generic fleet … Read more
Nazi Germany, 980 planned, 61 completed (1944-45) The true Elektroboot The Type XXI were large scale production Kriegsmarine’s “wunderwaffe” planned by Nazi Germany at the end of the war. Alongside the smaller Type XXIII “Elektobote” and numerous “midgets” at a stage events verged on desperation, the Type XXIII was also supposed to reverse the situation. … Read more
Germany (1925), Light Cruiser First postwar cruiser in Germany, the Emden (from the city, also to honour the famous 1914 corsair cruiser was authorized in 1921 in an unfavourable economic environment and suspicious allies. Emden was directly modelled after the last german cruisers built in WWI, the “Königsberg II” and the projected 1916 Flottenkreuzer (FK1) … Read more
Kriegsmarine Kreuzer 17* cruisers between the Reichsmarine and 1945 Germany Day ! The development of ww2 german cruisers started in interwar Germany, restarted in 1933 but cut short by the war, with plan Z postponed and cancelled later. It left the Kriegsmarine with just ten light cruisers and three heavy cruisers just completed, the remainder … Read more
Germany (1929-45) – About 424 Minesweepers Introduction: The Räumboote, or “R-Boote” were the mass-produced wooden-built German coastal minesweepers. In time, they also performed other missions, notably escort, ASW patrol and rescue. They were built from 1929 with the following R1, R17, R25, R41, R130, R151, R218, R301 and R401 classes, the latter mostly not completed … Read more
Type XB, the minelayer U-Boats Germany (1939-45): U-116, U-117, U-118, U-119, U-219, U-220, U-233, U-234 The Type X (XB) U-boats were a special type of German submarines of WW2 originally designed as long-range minelayers, but later used as long-range cargo transports as the Type IXD U-Boats, Italian Romolo-class submarines and several Japanese Types. In all, … Read more
German Heavy Cruisers (1937): Hipper, Blücher, Prinz Eugen, Seydlitz, Lützow KMS Hipper and her sister ships were the first and only heavy cruiser class ever built by Germany. They were enabled by the 1935 Anglo-German naval agreement and were intended still as commerce raiders and to screen for battleships, but cheating on tonnage. Wartime showed … Read more
Kriegsmarine Torpedoboote Germany (1924-45) – 36 (90 planned)+ 49 TB Ausland (TA), total 84 Why German Torpedo Boats in WW2 ? Before WW2, only four nations signatory of the Washington Treaty considered the torpedo boats as a way to go around some limitations in tonnage for destroyers, although this category was largely seen as obsolete … Read more
